Supplemental inflatable restraints or air bag assemblies are becoming increasingly common as a safety device in vehicles throughout the world. The assembly comprises an inflatable canister located in the steering column, the passenger-side dashboard, the side door panel, or seat. Upon a sufficiently great deceleration, the canister is inflated by an explosive device known as a squib, which contains a gun powder-based material. The squib is fired electronically upon a signal sent via wires from a deceleration or other sensor in the vehicle. The wires are attached to the squib via a squib connector that plugs into the squib socket.
A common form of squib assembly has two pins that extend within the socket, and an associated connector has two terminals that are in electrical contact with the pins when the connector is plugged into the socket. When the connector is removed from the socket, typically for servicing the inflation canister, a shorting clip or shunt is biased into electrical contact with the two pins to form an electrical connection therebetween to reduce the risk of misfiring, for example, by static electricity. The connector urges the shorting clip out of electrical contact with the pins when the connector is plugged into the socket.
During manufacture of a two-pin squib assembly, two rotational orientation concerns must be addressed. The pins must located at the correct clocking position relative to the connector and the squib. Also, the pins must be parallel to each other and perpendicular to the socket floor, or the entire assembly must be discarded. Also, during assembly of the vehicle, the vehicle manufacturer must be concerned about routing of the wires. A keying feature must be provided to ensure proper orientation of the assembly.
Other prior art air bag connectors are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,334,025 and 5,401,180.